Last Lies
by Quiet Nightinggale
Summary: Ellie finds out the truth from Joel.
1. Ellie's POV

Ellie stared at the window.

Beams of sunlight emerged through the glass and illuminated the tiny room. She sat on a makeshift chair that she made earlier.

She was angry. But the anger she felt right now was nothing compared to the absolute fury she exhibited the day before.

Yesterday, she found out the truth.

The Fireflies were going to kill her to create a cure. Then Joel killed the Fireflies. He also killed Marlene.

Recently, there have been nagging suspicions that Joel lied to her about what really occurred that day. She didn't want to suspect Joel, but she was unconscious during the time and had no recollection of what happened.

Everything was a big blank.

And the only one who knew the truth was Joel.

It was when they were both eating their dinner last night, which consisted of a couple handfuls of blueberries, did she started to interrogate him.

* * *

"_Did you lie?"_

She didn't need to elaborate her question. He knew what Ellie was asking about. For a few moments, Joel was silent. He held a blueberry between his fingertips. He suddenly seemed more interested in studying the skin of the miniature fruit, which wasn't abnormal, fruit were becoming more and more rare these days.

He didn't answer.

She felt her temper boiling, threatening to rise over the edge.

"_Joel, answer the fucking question!"_

At first, Joel didn't tell her willingly. He didn't dare look at Ellie when he spoke. He would turn his gaze to anywhere, but not to her. He told her the same excuse he said to her last time. There were other immune survivors. The idea of a cure was a failure. She heard it all before, but this time, her doubt was stronger.

Joel tried to reason with her and that's when he accidentally slipped out a part of the truth. Ellie's eyes widened and Joel knew it was too late. He hesitated, but he decided to tell her everything. After Joel finished telling Ellie the whole truth, she was trembling. She glared at him, clearly furious.

"_You swore everything you said was true! …And I-I believed you."_

After she yelled at him, Ellie took off, escaping out the door and finding solace in a room without Joel.

* * *

And here she was now. Her anger subsided quite a bit over the night. She couldn't sleep though, and there were black circles under her eyes.

She used to let her temper control her many times before, but she was more rational now, especially after the incident with David. She was less naïve about other people and she tried to think of why Joel did what he did and lied to her about it.

She asked out loud, more to herself than anyone else, "Why, Joel? Why?"

**A/N: They're probably out of character, but this is just how I imagine it. I know there are other stories about it, but it would be nice to see different versions of it. **


	2. Joel's POV

Joel wasn't shocked when Ellie asked him if he lied. He knew that Ellie doubted the story he made up. It was only a matter of time before she was going to ask. But the question did catch him off guard. He expected some more time for him to come up with the right words to say to her, but apparently Ellie wasn't patient enough.

* * *

"_The reason why you're immune to the infection was because of a mutation in your brain."_

_"The Fireflies were going to kill you, Ellie."_

* * *

Before the infected appeared, Joel's life was a peaceful one.

After years of juggling two jobs, Joel was able to give his daughter a decent house to live at. They were happy together, living just like any other normal family. He would let Sarah participate in soccer games. Joel and Tommy would be at the sidelines, cheering her on as she passed the ball to her teammates.

But then the plague began and their once peaceful home was thrown into chaos. Along with Tommy, Joel and Sarah tried to escape the horrors of the first infected. They would have, too, if their car didn't crash.

He still didn't give up because Sarah was still alive. He carried her in his arms and ran as fast he could, Tommy trailing behind him. He didn't even stop when Tommy did since all he could think about was Sarah's safety. When the soldier from the military found them, he felt relieved. He thought the soldier would understand and protect them.

Instead, Sarah was shot.

He panicked when he saw that her shirt was stained red. He cradled her, begging for her not to die. He saw her life quickly fade from her eyes anyway.

Joel's life fell apart when Sarah died.

He became a hardened man, one who concentrated on surviving. He was also less trustful of others after what the soldier did to Sarah.

Years later, he met Tess. They hit it off pretty well together and started a relationship, though he soon realized that he was attracted to her because he missed the comfort of having Sarah with him. They broke it off and decided to just be close friends from then on.

Several years passed and he knew that absolutely nothing could mend his life back together.

That was until he met Ellie.

He thought she was an annoyance at first, nothing more, and nothing less. He didn't expect himself to care so much as he did later on. Little by little, Ellie's influence weaved through the gruff attitude he had. He found that because of Ellie's presence near him, he was able to slowly glue back the pieces of his life. The cracks will never disappear, but he found another reason besides Sarah to be happy again.

Joel wasn't a super hero. He wasn't a martyr who would sacrifice everything for the sake of the entire world. He wasn't the type to save every person he saw that needed help. He wasn't a person that cared what others thought of him.

Joel was simply a survivor, and he was only human.

He already lost Sarah. He didn't know what would happen to him if he lost Ellie, too.

That's why killed them. That's why he killed the Fireflies and Marlene.

He didn't want Ellie to hate him, but he didn't regret his decision.

**A/N: Okay, I admit it. I half-assed this chapter. ): I'm sorry about that. I lost interest in writing this, but I hate uncompleted fics, so I tried to finish it at least. **


End file.
